Outlet-box.



.l. G. KNIGHT.

OUTLET BOX.

APPLICATION FILED u (s.24.-1912.

1,210,492. Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

V B! CC Warm/mar;

I WITNESS I la II,

J. GQKNIGHT.

OUTLET BOX. A PPLICATIONfILED AUGZM I912.

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Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- INVENTOR ATTORNEY A UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JULIAN GORDON KNIGHT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO J. GORDON KNIGHT ELECTRIC COMPANY, INC.

OUTLET-BOX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

Application filed August 24, 1912. Serial No. 716,885.

particularly relates to the construction of the box and the method of installing the same. In the ordinary wiring systems, outlet and junction boxes in the form of cups with peripheral walls and inner end walls are installed with their open ends adjacent to or substantially flush with the exposed f cur ng'the cover in place involves the prosurface of the wall or ceiling and. one or more conduits for the wires are connected to the sides or top of the boxes.

In concrete buildings or in buildings having concrete or other similar flooring or floor arches, it is common practice to place the conduits and outlet boxes in position upon the forms prior to the filling in of the concrete. The conduits are usually secured to the walls of the boxes by nuts or other suitable fastening members insideof the boxes upon the inwardly-projecting conduit ends. After placing the conduits and boxes, it is necessary to lift up the boxes so that the workman may reach into the box from the under side to place and tighten the nut or other fastening member,

or else he may rotate the box about the ticu'lar-type, form or shape of box, or any conduit so that the open side will be uppermost and render the fastenin device accessible. After securing the astening membe'r,'the return rotation of the outlet box to a downwardly-facing-position often t ing drawings, forming a part of thisspeciloosens or even disengages the fastening. Furthermore, after the conduits are connected to the boxes, both are liable to be shifted laterallyor even raised slightly during the filling'in and tamping down of the concrete or other plastic material.

In carrying out my invention, I form the outlet box so that the interior is accessible from the top or upper side after the box has been placed and secured on the form, and thus permit the ready and rigid attachinent of the conduits and the tightening of the fastening members Without moving or in any way disturbing the position of the outlet box. The box has a cover or top wall separate from the peripheral wall, so that the latter may be fastened down to the form in the exact position desired, and after the conduits have been secured there- .to upon the interior of the box, access being gained through the open top of the box, the cover or top wall is placed over the open top and the concrete is then filled in without liability of disturbing the box or the conduits. Thus, I am able to positively insure the accurate positioning of the box, the firm attachment of the conduits, and, due to the ease of attachment of the conduits, greater speed of installation may be secured. s

A very simple and efiicient means for sevision of upstanding lugs either integral therewith or rigidly secured to the side walls of the box and which may be bent over into locking engagement with the coverafter the conduits are attached. A

separable cover .or top wall has an added advantage in that it may be formed heavier and have a fixture support more readily formed integral therewith than when the cover is integral with the remainder of the box, or the cover maybe of thinner main the concrete above or at the sides of the box.

,My invention is not limited to any parparticular means for attaching the conduit thereto except. as hereinafter particularly pointed out and defined in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanyfication, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which Figure l is a perspective view showing a part of my improved outlet box in positlon and prior to the placing of the top wall or cover; Fig. 2 is a central vertical section showing the construction completely installed; Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional details showing modified forms of lug and cover construction; Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the fixture support and the attached bar shown in Fig. 2, and Fig. 6 is a top plan View of th sens n i e haun n My improved outlet box includes'a peripheral wall 10, which may be circular,

square, or of any other desired cross seotion and may be of the size, proportions an dmai l omm n mr e e in e are This peripheral wall may have plugged openings therein or weakened linesalon'g which-the metal ma be broken to form apertures, or maybe a aptedin any other manner for the attachment of one orni'or'e conduits 11. The box is open at the lower side or bottom althou either before or after the box is installed, a bottom or cover may be provided secured in place in any suitable manner, as, for instance, by screws'threaded into lugs The most important ieature of my imp rpved box is the separable top or cover which may :be iormed' of the same material as the peripheral wall'a'nd of such size and as to fit the open top; A very simple meansfor attaching the cover involves the formation on the peripheral wall 10, of lugs if which project above the plane oil. the

u per edge of'the peripheral wall and may extend through recesses in the edge of the cover. These lugs may be bent over into engagement with the upper surface of the to wall after the latter is placed in positionand serve not only to retain the cover against upward movement but the engagenient of the lugs in the recesses prevents the lateral shiftin of the cover even though only two lugsie employed. 'The lugs may be integral, as show'n inl igs. 1 and 2, or they may be the upper endsoi bars or strips of metal 15sec'ured' to the peripheral wa'll any-suitable manner, as, for i-nstance,*by one or more rivets. As shown in Fig.4,lugs 16 are bent over to 'lie'below the plane of the upper edge of the peripheral wall and the cover is secured to these lugs by suitable bolts or' screws '17. 1

For retaining the box in position upon the falsework or temporary support 21 forithe concrete, the peripheral wall maybe proyided with outwardly-extending lugs 18 adjacent to its lower or-bott-om edge. These lugs may be either integral with the peripheral wall or they may constitute the outwardly-extending lowerends of-the strips or bars 15; as shown in Fig. 3. As shown, they are perforated to receive nails, tacks or the like.

The cover may carry a fixture support in the form of a threaded stud 19,whic h may either be integral with or permanently attached to thecover or top wall, as shown in Fig. 3, or it may be carried by a bar 20 and extend downwardly through an aperture in 7 the cover. Such abar as is shown in Fig. 2,

may extend across above the cover and project outwardly beyond the peripheral wall f th .bQX a $1 9 n Fig. 6. a to be thoroughly anchored in the concrete. The bar may rest on top of the boxv after being placed and prior to the admission of the con- 'crete.

.Inthe practice of my improved method and the installation of my improved boxes, the peripheral wall portion of the box may be accurately placed upon the false-work or temporary support 21 of the concrete and may be directly attached to the latter by tacks or short nails driven through the lugs 18. The conduit or conduits are projected through the provided apertures in the peripheral wall and may be rigidly and permanently secured in place without disturbmg the box as access may be readily gained to the interior of the box through the open top. After the conduits are attached,the cover may be put .on ifor the-first time and permanently secured by bending over the lugs 14, or in any other suitable manner. If a separate anchoring piece with its fixture support is employed, it is then placed in position as indicated in Fig. 2. The concrete,

cinder concrete-.101 any other material going to make up the floor, may then be filled in to thoroughly cover' and conceal the conduitsand outlet boxes and no. great care exercised in placing or. tamping the concrete as thehox is held against-lateral, as

well asvertical, movement and cannot readily be displaced. After.- the concrete has been filled-in andhasliardened, the falsewogk ortemporary support--21 may be pulled away-and the/pro ecting. ends of the tacks or nailsin offn v Theperipheral: wall portion of. my improved box may be used as an outlet ,or juncthe lugs '18.;r'nay be bentover or cut "'tion; box in a vertical wall or in any other position where it is desirable to gain access to the box from .opposite sides.

' I claim-z .1. outlet box having a perforated -pe- I 'ripheral: wall through which leadingvin :waresmay extend, adetachable top wall, an

anchoring bar resting uponsaid' topwall and .-supported-' thereby and Ma length ma- --terially':g'reater than the d meter of S -;t.op wall, whereby the extremities p oje "beyond the box tie-independently support the bar, and afixture support carried by said bar and projecting through said top wall.

- 2. All outlet box having a perforated :peripheral wall through which leadingin wires may extend, a top wall, an anchoring bar resting upon said top walland supported ripheral wall throu h which leading-in wires may extend, a 'ture support within said box and a member secured to said fixture support and detachable from said eripheral wall and su ported thereby durlng the installation of t e box and projecting materially beyond said peri heral wall whereby said member may sustain the weight of said fixture support independently of said peripheral wall when said box is 10 covered over with concrete.

Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New York this 22nd day of August A. D. 1912.

JULIAN GORDON KNIGHT.

Witnesses:

FLORENCE Lnvnm, JAMES D. BROWN.

Oople: of this patent my be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

- Washington, D. 0. 

